LG G7 specs, release date, news and rumours: What’s the story so far?

LG G7 specs, release date, news and rumours: What’s the story so far?

LG normally releases two flagship phones a year, one in the form of the G-Series at the beginning of the year and the other in the form of the V-Series towards the latter half of the year.

With that in mind, the LG G7 is the next smartphone expected to come from the South Korean company and it looks like we might be seeing it launch sometime in March, certainly during the Spring – but definitely not February when we’ll get a revamped 2018 AI-touting version of the LG V30.

Here are all the rumours we know so far about the LG G7.

LG G7 name

Surely G7 to follow up on last year’s G6

So we’ll start with the name. We’ve been calling it the LG G7 so far because that made logical sense following previous device releases. There’s been some doubt on how LG is going to brand the phone, however, following a report that appeared in The Investor.

There’s been a shuffle in how LG presents its phones recently, with the LG V30 pitching itself much more as a general powerhouse and trying to shed the image of being a phone specifically for videographers.

“Some stories have reported that LG’s mobile division is delaying the release of the G7 in order to reevaluate its performance and design. This is inaccurate. Preparations for the launch of the G6’s successor are on schedule.” Of course, there’s no knowing what that schedule is or when this phone might be launched.

LG’s next phone design

Likely to be waterproof with drop protection

Similar design to G6 and V30 expected

Combination of metal and glass again?

The rumours surrounding the LG G7’s design have been few and far between but we aren’t expecting there to be a great deal of change compared to the LG G6.

It might see some refinements, perhaps taking a few tips from the LG V30, but overall, a similar look to the G6 flagship is likely. This means you can probably bet on a glass and metal sandwich design, waterproofing, drop protection and an almost all-screen front.

It’s also very likely that there will be a dual-camera on the rear of the device and probably a circular fingerprint sensor, unless LG chooses to ditch fingerprint recognition altogether in favour of another biometric security technology, as Apple did with the iPhone X.

LG does like to experiment with design (remember the modular G5), so you can never be too sure what it has up its sleeve.

LG’s next phone display

18:9 aspect ratio display expected

Likely to be around 5.7-inches

Quad HD+ resolution probable

Large displays were the biggest trend of flagship smartphones in 2017, with many devices opting for an 18:9 (or thereabouts) aspect ratio over the standard 16:9 we’d seen previously.

LG was one of the first companies to introduce this, with the G6 offering a 5.7-inch display within a similar footprint to the 5.3-inch LG G5. It has a Quad HD+ resolution at 2880 x 1440 pixels for a pixel density of 564ppi and it offers HDR10 and Dolby Vision support.

It is not yet clear what size the G7’s display will be, though we’d expect it to be between the 5.7-inch of the G6 and the 6-inches of the V30. The 18:9 aspect ratio will no doubt remain and a Quad HD+ resolution as a minimum is likely too, as well as support for HDR. We’d also expect it to be OLED, but with LG getting some negative press following the release of the Google Pixel 2 XL, we’d expect the focus to be on quality.

LG G7: Camera

Dual rear camera expected

OIS, PDAF and manual mode likely

Facial recognition technology?

LG has had a good track record over the last couple of years in terms of camera performance and we’d expect the G7 to follow suit.

A dual camera is probably going to be on the rear, most likely in the same setup as previous LG devices with a standard lens coupled with a wide-angle lens.

Whether LG will increase the resolutions of the sensors on the rear is not yet known, but expect optical image stabilisation, phase detection autofocus and manual mode for adjusting shutter speed, ISO, exposure and white balance, as the G6 offers.

The LG G6 and the V30 both come with a 5-megapixel front-facing camera, though the resolution might increase for the G7 and it’s possible we might see other technology too, such as facial recognition technology like the V30 offers. For now though, it’s a wait and see game.

LG G7: Hardware and software

At least 4GB RAM expected

MicroSD support likely

Fast charging probable

The LG G7 will offer advancements in processor compared to the G6, as all succeeding flagships do, but which chipset this will be remains to be seen.

The G6 has 4GB of RAM, 32GB of internal memory and microSD support for storage expansion so we’re expecting at least that on the G7. A couple of devices, such as the OnePlus 5T and the Samsung Galaxy Note 8 offer 6GB of RAM so perhaps LG will make the jump for the G7 though nothing has been rumoured as yet.

In terms of battery capacity, the G6 and the V30 both offer 3300mAh capacities so we’d expect similar under the hood of the G7. No doubt fast charging will be supported and USB Type-C will be the responsible port for charging.

The LG G6 and V30 both arrived on Android Nougat with LG’s UX 6.0 user interface over the top. It means you get Android at the core but with bloatware, which is likely to be the same for the LG G7, though we’d expect it to launch on Android Oreo.

LG G7: Conclusion

The LG G7 is currently a bit of a guessing game with very little to go on in terms to good quality leaks.

There’s been a lot of speculation, but we do know for sure that LG is working on a successor to the LG G6. Currently, the low number of leaks and rumours suggests that it’s still some way off.